


To Be A Father

by zacizach



Series: Iris [2]
Category: Hermitcraft RPF, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: AU where Doc can't dad properly, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Family Dynamics, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Haha ill never stop worldbuilding, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi, OOC, Respawn Mechanics, Temporary character deaths due to respawn, never learned how to do tags and never will, no beta we die like my pet bee, switching POVs, tags will change
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 08:28:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27348136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zacizach/pseuds/zacizach
Summary: When Doc ends up choosing work over his role as a father figure, tension rises within the new family. And when an accident occurred that involves the Hippies vanishing alongside their time machine, Doc was left to care for the kid.Only one problem.The kid hates him.ORDoc and the kid doesnt know how to act like a family and Xisuma needs another nap[The sequel to 'What is Home?' and the second book in the series]
Relationships: Everyone & A child, Everyone & Friendship, Grian/Rendog/Docm77 (minor), Joe Hills/ZombieCleo, Xisuma & another freaking nap, stressmonster101/iskall85
Series: Iris [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1718122
Comments: 34
Kudos: 52





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ngl, I didnt think I'll have the sequel up so soon. 
> 
> NONETHELESS if you're a reader of mine, welcome back to the irisverse! where we torture not just the child but everyone involved one way or another 
> 
> and if you happen to be a new reader and ignored the disclaimer at the summary, welcome! highly suggest to read the first book first- its not that long! only about... thirty chapters. no biggie. but if u just want to read this for funsies then i wont stop you. 
> 
> sit back, relax, and watch as i ruin this new family

_ "It's gonna be okay, S̵̭͈͘3̶̱̈́̚v̴̘̳Ṽ̷͎̆8̶̯̹̀N̶͎̓̑. I'm here with you, okay? You don't have to be scared, I'm here.” _

_ "Bad people are gonna come but I won't let them hurt you." _

_ "No, I won't let you get killed. I won't allow it." _

_ "... I won't die, either."  _

_ "I know, and I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying by your side, alright? I promise." _

_ I promise.  _

* * *

“So, I can world-hop?”

Joe nodded, adding a circle around Iris’ figurine drawing. She gaped at the added detail, but adapted and just drew around it. The paper was littered with doodles and stickman drawings, most of which are supposed to represent one or more of the hermits. Unfortunately, Joe was unable to find himself even though Iris insisted that he was there on the paper. 

“Yes. Every player has the ability to hop through worlds, as long as they have the consciousness and awareness to do so. Unfortunately, you’re quite young to world hop on your own- not to mention, you just became a player. I believe Impulse will be visiting his friend, Skizz, next week. He’ll be going to their private world to do some redstone projects together. Perhaps your fathers would let you come with Impulse, so you can have a taste of world-hopping.” 

Iris looked excited at the thought of going to another world. “Has- Has anyone world hopped when they were kids?” 

“There are players who are able to world-hop as young as six years old, though it has a lot of… er… let’s just say it is not safe. However, those above ten are usually responsible to world-hop by themselves. If I recall, Grian had been able to world-hop since he was about twelve. Personally, I was only able to world-hop when I was sixteen.” 

Iris hummed in response, making a drawing of her dads for the fourth time this hour. 

Joe looked up at the clock, noticing the time. Doc should be here by now… where is he? 

He supposed he could teach Iris a few more things.

“Iris, want me to teach you something that would amaze your fathers?” 

The child was immediately interested, and she furiously nodded as she kept away her supplies in a small pencil box (that Bdubs made for her). The poet smiled gently and pulled out a fresh sheet of paper from a stack on the table. He set it in front of her and began writing down three names. 

Grian, Ren, and Doc. 

Iris giggled at the sight of their names and looked at Joe curiously. 

“Iris, do you call them by their real names?” 

Iris looked at the names and then nodded. 

“Try this. I think it will make them very happy.” 

Joe then wrote something down below each of the names. 

Daddy, Pops, and Vati.

It has been a joke within the hermits about it for a while, now. Only Ren was really aware and accepting of his role as a father, and the hermits teased that Iris hasn’t called them ‘Daddy’ yet. Which is… which is weird. Iris isn’t that oblivious to the fact everyone saw the three hermits as her father figures, right? She at least must be aware that her relationship between the three of them is different compared to others. 

So why was Iris so scared when she saw those three words? 

“Iris?” Joe worriedly said her name, placing a hand on her shoulder lightly. “Are you okay?” 

The child did not say anything, only staring at those three words before she eventually shook her head ‘no’. She took a new page of the paper and began writing down. 

Through her messy handwriting, Joe barely managed to decipher Iris’ response. 

_ I dunno. What they will feel. _

“Is that so?” Joe asked, his lips pulled into a frown as he saw Iris hang her head. “Why do you think that?” 

_ Grian sees himself as Guardian, not daddy. Ren is too nice. Doc… I duno. Also what does Vati mean?  _

“Vati is the german word for ‘daddy’- But anyway, why not? I think they would be happy to hear those words from you.” 

Iris didn’t respond this time, placing her pen down on the table. She looked tired. 

Joe sighed seeing her like this. When she became a player, she was able to speak again. However, it seems as if talking makes her more tired than any physical activity. They’re working on it- having Iris speak more than three sentences every time. But usually, when Iris seems tired from talking, she would just write it down. 

Now that Joe took a closer look, he realized she looked more tired than yesterday. Or the day before. He wondered why. 

The door opened in the little schoolhouse, and Cleo entered. She had a red shulker box tucked under one arm, the other being used to open the door. She looked surprised seeing Iris still in the room. 

“Hey, you two. Doc running late?” She asked as she placed the shulker box down on the floor. She walked over to Iris to give her a small pat and gave Joe a small peck on the side of the head. “Howdy, handsome.” 

“Hello to you too, gorgeous.” 

This was not how they flirt, no. This was how they torture Iris during schooltime. 

She gagged and stuck her tongue out, seeing the exchange between them. Iris really is a child. 

“I’ll whisper to Grian about it, try out the new update a bit,” Cleo said, already putting a hand over her mouth to send Grian a quiet message. Iris tipped her head to the side, almost asking Joe what she meant by that. 

“There was another way we could communicate privately, and it's through this function called ‘whispers’. It’s like regular whispering, but only the person receiving the whisper can hear it, no matter how far they are. There was a bit of a glitch so the universe took it out for a while. Guess it updated overnight.”

“Message is sent and got a whisper back. Apparently they didn’t know Doc was going to be busy. Grian’s on his way.” Cleo said, sitting down beside Joe and leaning back. “So… You teaching Iris some new words?”

Joe chuckled. “She knows those words already. She has yet to connect them to her parental figures.”

Iris noticed Cleo’s questioning stare and just shrugged, not quite in the mood to answer.

“Hm, alrighty then. Grian should be-”

The sound of teleportation was heard nearby, followed by seeing purple particles. Grian appeared right beside the table looking a bit disheveled in many places, mainly his hair where a bunch of redstone dust all over. 

“Pardon me, Ren and I were occupied with the hippie commune. Doc was supposed to pick her up since it’s Monday.” Grian said, his voice having an edge to it at the mention of the creeper hybrid. Iris didn’t seem to notice it, though, only happy to see Grian and jumped up from her seat to give him a hug in greeting. 

“Doc probably had something to do, it’s alright,” Joe said with a kind smile, even though Cleo could sense the worry radiating off of the poet.

Grian smiled back, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He looked tired, and also irritated. Probably due to Doc not doing his part. However, there was an ounce of happiness when Iris urged Grian to carry her. Laughing, he picked her up. 

“You seem tired, Grian. Are you going to teleport again?” Cleo asked.

“Nah, too much energy. Also, Iris likes it when I fly anyway.” Grian said, grinning. 

“I do wonder why…” 

Grian smiled with a knowing look, not answering. He said his goodbyes to the teachers and left the schoolhouse, Iris waving at them over his shoulder. 

They heard the faint sound of wings flapping, and from there they knew Grian and Iris had finally departed. Joe let out a deep breath he didn’t know was holding, running a hand through his dark hair. Cleo looked at him in worry. 

“Doc hasn’t been… present, these past few days.” Joe said, noticing Cleo’s gaze. “I’m worried that he had gone back into his ‘obsessive work’ mindset, now that our server is no longer a threat and everyone is relatively back to normal.”

Cleo was also worried- but not about Doc. Okay, maybe about Doc as well, but she’s mainly worried about what will happen to the new family consisting of Grian, Ren, Doc and their adopted kid, Iris. (... She’s bias, she’s more worried about Iris).

She should’ve known that this wasn’t going to be an easy time for them, but she had some sense of hope. She didn’t want them to break apart due to Doc’s obsession with his work, it would affect Iris. 

Of course, they’re all adults and they have to be the ones to talk about this issue. If it gets worse, then the hermits will step in. For now, they trust they know what they’re doing. 

At least, Cleo thought. 

* * *

Doc found Scar in the archives (no, not The Archives) where they store the information gathered from unusual specimens. He found it strange to find his friend in this room, he half-expected Scar to be outside, finishing off last-minute touches of Area 77 or examining the time machine downstairs with Jellie by his side. 

The hermit was seated on one of the tables, three thick books stacked over one another at one side, the fourth being used by Scar. He was also scribbling notes on a personal note-book. Scar was so deep in concentration, he did not hear Doc approaching him, or Jellie letting out a small ‘meow’ at the sight of the creeper hybrid. 

“I’ve been looking for you,” Doc said, his voice as low as ever and rumbling against his chest. 

Scar let out a loud gasp of surprise, dropping his quill while doing so. He snapped his head towards Doc’s direction with almost a crazed, confused look. It nearly made Doc laugh. Once Scar realized it was just his colleague, he calmed down and offered him a sheepish smile. 

“Good afternoon, Doc!” He greeted, voice cheery to mask the fear still lingering in his body. “What, uh, brings you here?” 

“You disappeared for, like, two hours. I was hoping you would help me finish off the hangars but I couldn’t find you. I even messaged you but you didn’t respond.

Scar let out a small sound of confusion and pulled out his communicator from his pocket. He widened his eyes, seeing the current time. He scrolled back up to the earlier chats and saw Doc asking the others if they had seen Scar. Only Cub responded, saying no. 

“Oh my gosh- I’m so sorry! I was having my break and thought I could spend the time studying a bit. Time must have flown way over my head because I was not aware-” Scar continued to ramble. It was amusing. 

Doc looked over at the books and notes Scar has written. The books were old, some looking ancient with how yellow and how torn the edges of the pages are. The words seem intelligible to read at the very least, and there’s a bunch of diagrams. Doc likes to think he’s smart, as smart as Cub, but he has no idea what the hell Scar’s doing.

“What are you studying? Looks… a lot.” Doc asked.

“Oh! Cub and I decided to touch up on our magic knowledge in the universe.” Scar began to explain, almost looking excited now that Doc brought it up. “We think it’s going to be very helpful in teaching Iris about magic, and also try to understand exactly how her abilities can be proved effective in her current state. However, we realized that Iris isn’t a magic-user since she doesn’t have any magic of her own.”

The creeper hybrid wasn’t listening, only managing to catch the kid’s name. 

“And so, we’ve been trying to figure out how to adapt with that- and I didn’t realize there’s so much more about magic we don’t really know off the bat! It’s intriguing and frankly, really fascinating. Did you know that if a non-magic user is surrounded by magic particles or energy for long periods of time, they would eventually harness the same magic energy around them, despite not being able to do said magic?? ISN’T THAT COOL?!” 

Doc blinked. “That sounds a lot like Bdubs.”

Scar visibly looked less excited now. “Oh. Uh, right. Anyway, I should thank Wels. He visited the library in the community hub with his wife two days ago and borrowed them, saying it could probably be useful-”

Again, he wasn’t listening. Rather, he was stressed when he saw the current time. Shit, he was supposed to pick up Iris, wasn’t he? It was a Monday- Or a Wednesday? He usually picks her up during those two days- wait, did he pick up Iris last Wednesday? 

“Hey, uh, Scar? I gotta go do something real quick-” Doc said, already turning until he felt the air pass through his ear, tickling him a bit, followed by Grian’s disappointing tone. 

_ Picked up Iris. _

“Doc, you alright? You seem pretty out of it.” Scar worriedly asked, standing up from his chair to walk to Doc’s side when he remained unmoving for a minute. His co-worker placed a hand over his shoulder, urging him to look at him in the eyes. “Do you want to talk about it?” 

No, Doc does not want to talk about it. He imagined the disappointment in Grian and Ren- but would it be worse if he saw the sadness in Iris’ eyes?

But… He knows what he’s doing is important. He has to protect the hermits from the danger of alien technologies and species! And even though he’s against the other two responsible for Iris, they have to understand that what they’re doing can be dangerous. 

Like, a time machine? That actually works?! Come on, man! The universe won’t be pleased with that!

“Nothing, Scar. After you’re done, let’s get back to work.” Doc said, brushing off Scar’s comforting hand and leaving the archives. He could always apologize to them tomorrow. 

* * *

Doc didn’t come back “home” that night. Or the night after that. 

It was Wednesday now, and Doc didn’t come to pick Iris up. 

Fortunately, Grian was expecting this (as much as it hurts him) and was already there by the time Iris was done packing her school stuff into a shulker box. 

“Grian!” Iris smiled, seeing him in the doorway. She quickly stored the shulker box in her inventory and ran up to him in excitement, already wanting the hermit to pick her up in his arms. Grian happily obliged and easily lifted the girl into his arms. 

Joe noted that he looked less tired than before, but more noticeably tensed in some areas. Cleo also noticed, and the teachers shared a look with each other before facing Grian. 

“Everything alright with Doc?” Joe asked first. “He hasn’t been seen in a while.”

“Just Doc doing whatever Doc does,” Grian replied, voice even and unidentifiable. 

Again, the teachers shared a look, this time with more worry. Grian saw them and sighed, adjusting his hold on Iris who was busy playing with Grian’s sweater collar. 

“Don’t worry about it. Thanks for teaching Iris- we’ll be off now.” 

Iris, strangely enough, didn’t seem too keen on wanting to leave Joe and Cleo. She looked pleadingly at her teachers as they left, and that was when the zombie hybrid finally knew something was really wrong with the family’s current arrangement. 

* * *

When night falls, Iris was sound asleep in her own little room in Grian’s futuristic base. The sounds of the waves crashing against the building lulling her to a peaceful and dreamless sleep. A sheep plushie was tucked between Iris’ arms, courtesy to Zedaph. She has a lot of plushies given by the hermits- safely placed between her and the wall so they don’t fall. Out of all of them, the Mini-Doc plushie was still easily seen.

The sight of the plushie made Ren paused, looking at the stitched eyes with a bitter smile before finally closing the door. 

Ren placed his hand on the wooden surface, resting his forehead against it as he let out a deep sigh. Today has been stressful, so to speak. Now that Iris is asleep, he doesn’t have to worry much about her.

After a moment, he finally lets go and goes to the kitchen to find Grian pouring himself a cup of tea- quite aggressively, he noticed. The sweater-wearing hermit nearly spilled the contents of the kettle as he slammed it back down on the counter, heaving a deep breath. 

“G? You alright?” Ren gently asked as he walked over to his side. Grian looked tensed and Ren had to quickly grab his cup to put down on the counter before he could break it from holding it too tightly. “Grian? Is this about Doc?” 

Grian laughed, hollow. “Of course it’s about Doc- The man just up and disappeared when he knows very well of the responsibility he has of Iris. He knows and has agreed to it- we talked about it even!” He paused, and let out a small grumble. “It’s just… infuriating.” 

Ren looked sad, seeing his friend like this. He doesn’t want them to have an argument over Iris- it would just be too devastating. He would rather talk it out but… Doc hasn’t even left Area 77 since who knows when. Guess he understood in a way- this wasn’t the first time Doc gets obsessed. 

“Grian, I understand that it’s hard and… and difficult. I’ve known Doc for years and I know he gets like this sometimes. Being obsessed with work, I mean. For years it was the only thing going for him and I guess being a father is a whole new experience for him. We’ll talk to him.”

Grian looked at Ren with an expression on his face the hybrid could not describe. Was it sadness? And… awe? Or was it envy?

“I don’t understand how you’re so optimistic about it.” Grian softly said, letting his shoulders sag to release the tension he was holding (almost in defeat with his own raging thoughts). Ren half-smiled, knowing what Grian was talking about. 

“What? Doc choosing work over literally anything else? He’s always been like that- especially in the earlier seasons. And ever since the nHo-” Ren stopped. Grian waited. “... disbanded, Doc has been making sure to spend more time with the hermits, especially this season, making sure every moment is not wasted. Of course, Doc was bound to go back into his old habits but he’ll bounce back. He didn’t just risk his life to save Iris for nothing.” 

Right… they still don’t know exactly what Xisuma and Doc have done, only knowing what they found out but not how. Maybe they’ll tell them soon, or keep it with them until next season. 

“I know, Ren. But I’m more worried about Iris. Don’t you remember how Doc’s absence affected her when he left the server? She misses him so much- and that’s when she’s limited to her naivety from being an NPC. Who knows how she would feel, being neglected by someone she considered an important figure like you and I. Iris has the capability to feel more and do more, now that she’s a player, and I…” Grian stopped, sighing. 

Ren looked worried. 

“... I’m sorry. It’s just, it reminded me of my home back in homeworld. The younger kids usually get frustrated, and because there isn’t much adult supervision, they do stupid things. Break things, fight each other, running away…” 

The thought of Iris possibly running away from them made Ren’s stomach drop. 

“Then we’ll talk to Doc. We have to persevere and be optimistic. We may not have chosen the parent life but the parent life chose us, so we must do our very best in the situation! We have to do this to make Iris happy. She deserves it.” Ren encouraged, flashing Grian a smile that would definitely make anyone weak on the knees. He didn’t mean to, he was just that attractive, and he likes smiling a lot. 

Dark orbs widened at the sight of that smile, and Grian hastily looked away, picking up the now-warm cup and drinking it as if his life depends on it. Ren laughed, finding his reaction amusing and admittedly cute. 

Once Grian has calm down, he placed his cup on the sink for their morning selves to handle. Ren watched with a slight fondness as Grian took a step back from the sink and stretched. His shirt is too big it didn’t even show a sliver of skin (not like Ren was expecting to, definitely not).

“Ren? I have an idea... “ The shorter hermit turned and flashed Ren a mischievous looking grin, no sign of anger or doubt from moments ago. 

Ren could already feel himself sweating just hearing those words. “Er… Yea, G?”

“If Doc keeps on ignoring Iris then we’ll just have to give him a reason to come back!” Grian said, opened his arms wide as if it would help with the vague explanation. Though, this made Ren smile. Grian looked to be in a better mood than he was days ago. It’s quite in character for him to pull a trick on Doc for choosing work over Iris. 

“Might want to elaborate more on that, G.”

“Doc is gonna feel so left out if he realized that the kid is on OUR side in this little game. In other words, we make Iris a Hippie!” 

Imagining Iris in flower crowns was both hilarious and cute to Ren. He wasn’t sure how exactly this would make Doc feel left out, but perhaps this could wake Doc up just a bit to see how much he’s missing out on Iris’ life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some news/reminders depending if ur a new reader of mine or not
> 
> There is an askblog! To the recurring readers, it is now out of hiatus and back in sessions, baby! with some new and improved rules that I think you guys would like! So if you want to, [Click here!](https://iris-askblog.tumblr.com/)
> 
> see you at the bottom!

When Grian asked if Iris wanted to join the Hippies, she was vibrating with excitement, probably now that she has something fun to do after classes. Even better that it was with Grian and Ren.

Impulse was surprised but nonetheless happy to find out about the addition of Iris in their shenanigans. This was the perfect opportunity to teach Iris a lot of things outside of books and classrooms- more specifically, on the building and technical things. 

When Cleo and Joe heard of it, they were rather conflicted. Sure, they could see Iris being more happy than she was the day before but this hippie shenanigans is closely linked to what Doc and Scar are doing in Area 77. The hippies are against Doc and Scar. It’s a rivalry, and last time there was a rivalry (mainly between Grian and Doc), a war happened. And they are bringing a child into this. 

Perhaps it was all in good fun- which it should be! They’re all friends and sometimes rivalries can make friendships stronger (which sounds strange out of the context of what the hermits have been through). But with Grian and Doc being on two different sides and having their child be on one side? That just screams trouble.

Especially when the tension between them is already high. 

It was Friday now and no sign of either Doc or Scar. The duo is definitely busy with whatever they’re doing in Area 77, giving the hippies more time to finish off the RV and collecting more flowers to infiltrate them. 

Grian was up in the humongous ‘launched’ RV, building up the smaller RV inside of it that will be used to actually go over the government area. Impulse was rewiring some bits inside the timer, and Ren was ensuring their flower stock is filled to the very brim- with a few excess. Iris was helping the hybrid check the flowers and store them in various shulker boxes. 

“Do you know what color this is?” Ren asked, picking up a dandelion from the shulker box. It wasn’t one of the main flowers they were using, but it doesn’t hurt to have every kind of flower there is in store. Iris looked at the dandelion with interest and nodded.

“Ye! Wels and False!”

Ren blinked, a bit taken back by the answer. “Uh…”

Iris picked up a strand of her own hair (that was now trimmed and tied courtesy to Stress) and showed it to Ren. “Wels and False! Looks… Flower!” 

“You mean- ohh! You think Wels and Falsie’s hair looks like a dandelion?” Iris nodded at that, happy that Ren understood her. She went back to storing each flower into different colored shulker boxes, leaving Ren with his thoughts. 

Iris definitely knows her colors- and he was certain Joe and Cleo had taught her the names of those colors. Maybe it was simply habit for her to refer to colors related to things she has seen- like how she thinks dandelions are similar to the color of Wels and Falsie’s hair. 

He wondered how Iris would react if he told her that Wels was actually a brunette and that he dyed his hair blonde. 

“Is Iris still struggling to talk?” Impulse asked, standing beside Ren as they watch Iris play with the flowers a bit. She squeaked when her red-yellow flower crown covered her eyes when she leaned forward a bit too much. Ren smiled at the sight. 

“Kiddo is more than capable of saying sentences. She’s a smart girl. Although, Joe told me that her body hasn’t been used to speaking long sentences in such a long time, probably due to the restriction she had as an NPC. So while she is able to talk like a normal kid, she gets more tired and her throat also gets rough. So she just resorts to saying simple phrases.” 

Impulse nodded, understanding. “At least we’re all seeing her learn everyday… well, except for Doc.” 

With his name mentioned, Ren visibly deflated. His ears drooped and his tail hung between his legs. “Yea…”

He recalled the conversation he had with Grian a few nights ago. At the time, he thought it was a good idea for Iris to be involved. But after seeing Joe and Cleo’s negative reaction, he’s not so sure anymore. 

On one hand, realizing that the child he is responsible for is against him would make it hilarious and could hopefully bring out the fun side of Doc where they play the bit of ‘family betrayals’ in this scenario. Also, Iris will be introduced to the many shenanigans of the Hermitcraft server, so that’s always a plus! 

But on the other hand… this seems different. Maybe Grian’s plan was meant to be a bit teasing but for good intentions. This all seems a bit personal. 

Maybe they should talk to Doc straight instead of solving their problems through a bit. 

“Ren! Impy!” Iris ran back to the men and tugged on Ren’s shirt. “Look! Grian!”

Sure enough, when they looked up they saw their sweater-wearing friend on the mini-RV inside of the larger RV, peering down at them and waving like a maniac. He could barely be seen from where they are on the ground, but they could tell Grian was calling them over. 

“See you at the top!” Impulse exclaimed, launching into the air when he equipped his elytra. Ren rolled his eyes but prepared for take-off anyway. Iris easily jumped into his arms, knowing they would be flying. Ren hoped Grian would teach her how to use an elytra soon- it would be so fun and amazing to watch her fly.

He was then reminded of the scars Iris possessed, still hidden under her clothes. It was a bitter reminder to him that even though what happened to Iris has long passed, she has lost her identity- the evidence that she was a hybrid avian.

(Ren had to tell himself that she lost her wings due to unfortunate circumstances including wanting to make her own world suffer, not because of modern hybrid discrimination.)

Besides himself, Grian and Doc, a few others only knew about the scars Iris has on her back. Them being Xisuma, Scar, and Cub. Though… he wondered if Iris was even aware of the scars on her back. 

He landed on the body of the RV, putting Iris down to let her inspect the redstone stuff poking at the honey blocks and making weird but fascinated voices. 

“Don’t touch the redstone, kid. You might explode it again.” Impulse said when he saw her reaching to touch one of the redstone dust. Grian laughed at that, though he did pull Iris’ hand away. 

“Iris doesn’t have magic for the redstone right now,” Grian explained.

Ren looked at Grian, confused. Even Impulse stared blankly.

“Uh… very complicated magic stuff that will take a while to explain. But just know Iris doesn’t have any magic of her own, so anything she did back then will not likely happen for a while.”

Ren was still… a bit confused, but he didn’t question it. “Alrightie, G. What’cha got for us?”

“Check this out- If I did the redstone correctly, then this RV should begin to automatically push itself forward once I place the obsidian down.”

“A moving RV… Nice.” Impulse complimented with a thumbs-up. “I didn’t know you’re this good with redstone- I shouldn’t be surprised, you did make the one-tick farms yourself.”

“Not without your help, Impulse.” Grian replied. “It did take me a long time and a lot of reference to outside sources, and I’m not even sure if this will work.”

Iris poked on the slime block but looked up at Grian with a toothy grin. “It will. I know.” 

Ren verbally awed at Iris’ supportive tone. Impulse was trying to hide his laughter by covering his mouth when he saw Grian nearly shedding a tear.

“Okay… Are we good on the flowers?”

“Yessir.” Iris saluted. 

“Sweet. Good job, hippies.” Grian then looked towards the direction to Area 77. With their height, they could see the entire government settlement. It was also where their battle with Xonne took place. But that’s behind them now. The four hippies looked onward, with determined faces. 

Iris sat on the edge and intertwined her fingers together in front of her. 

She wondered if Doc could see them. 

* * *

It was the day they will infiltrate Area 77. And already they’re facing… an issue.

The most critical being that the RV that was supposed to launch was unlaunchable.

It didn’t take that long to fix the problem, and already they are prepared for another launch. 

“Will there be… flowers? Enough? Area is too big.” Iris asked, gesturing to the large area of grass. She hadn’t been inside since the whole Xonne fiasco, and frankly no one has except for Doc and Scar themselves. 

“Don’t worry about that, kid. I think we have flowers worth the entire season, and some.” Impulse said with a smile, patting the top of her hair- which still has her dark roots and strands. “Did you get a haircut? I didn’t notice.” 

“Ye! Stress did it, and gave me a fringe!”

“That is so adorable.”

Grian placed the last redstone block down and after ensuring that nothing seemed to be out of place, he stood up and groaned loudly. “Okay! I think the RV is done… hopefully with no mistakes this time. Ren, are the flowers in?” 

“In and ready to pollinate the government fields!” Ren gave him a thumbs-up. Grian laughed at his use of words and turned to Iris and Impulse. 

“Hey, Iris! Wanna help me launch this RV?” 

Iris perked up and nodded excitedly, leaving Impulse’s side to run up to where Grian was standing. She was real careful to not step on the exposed redstone blocks and components on top of the RV. Grian handed her an obsidian block, which shrunk to fit her palm. As Iris inspected the dark and smooth block, Grian turned back to Ren and Impulse, who seemed to understand the next request.

“Let’s hope this works.” Impulse said, and jumped off the RV to initiate the launch. Ren gave both Grian and Iris finger-guns, and just because he can, winked before falling backward off the RV and into the air. Grian rolled his eyes at the obvious sight of showing off. Iris was still occupied with the obsidian block to notice the lame attempt at flirting. 

“Kiddo, ready to get this show on the road?” 

Iris tore her eyes away from the block to give her attention to Grian, and nodded, smiling. Grian directed her to the spot where she would place the obsidian block, and gave the other two hippies the go-ahead to countdown. 

From their comms, they could hear Ren and Impulse counting down. The moment it reached zero, Iris placed the obsidian block down, activating the redstone within the RV. The movement caused Grian and Iris to lurch backward, nearly falling off from how sudden it was. 

“RV is launched- We gotta move! Get to the tunnels, hippies!” 

* * *

“Doc? Doc?? DOC?!!”

The creeper hybrid looked up from where he was working, catching sight of Scar leaning against the doorway, breathing heavily. He looked stressed and disheveled all over the place, causing Doc to stand up quickly.

“Scar? What’s wrong?”

“The hippies- they- they… FLOWERS! ALL OVER!” 

Scar was too out of breath to fully explain, but Doc got the idea once he mentioned the hippies. Already he could feel himself grumbling and growling as he stomped through their office and to the outside to see the damage they’ve caused. 

One thing he saw straight away was the ridiculous amount of flowers grown on their grounds. Another thing he saw was a huge fucking RV smashed on the side of their mountain- where he noticed is the source of the flowers. 

There were purple magic particles sending the flowers out, Doc realized with a start. Already he knew this was the work of Grian. 

“Scar, help me shut that down!” Doc commanded, taking his trident out from his inventory to point at the RV. He threw it with immense power, it sailed through the air and strike against the side of the RV. However, it held against the force of the trident.

Doc hissed in annoyance as he called his trident back, watching Scar fly up to the RV itself to inspect the source of the magic. The creeper hybrid didn’t think twice and also flew up to the RV using his elytra, unaware that this was part of the hippies’ plan all along. 

* * *

There was an explosion somewhere underground, though no one could hear it on the surface. 

Iris let out small coughs as the gunpowder dust waft through her nose, though she didn’t have time to process what happened as she felt Ren grip her hand and tugged her along. 

“Woah!” Grian shouted, falling into the tube-like thing and landing on the ground painfully. Impulse glided down safely, Ren doing the same with Iris in his arms. 

They crouched down once they all landed. Iris couldn’t help but awe at the interior, amazed by the building and use of colors. 

“They really did make this look amazing… curse the government,” Ren said, genuinely impressed. “I think they’re distracted. We have to make this quick and find that time machine.” 

They nodded and began running down the halls. They didn’t go that far before stumbling upon a wider space that held many huge rooms blocked by windows and overhead doors made of iron and… quartz. The group also saw Jellie, who Iris immediately went over to give her a pet. 

“Jellie 3?” Iris asked, referring to the tag hanging around Jellie 3’s neck. 

“Guess so. What happened to Jellie 2 and Jellie 1?” Grian asked, half-joking and half-serious. If Scar had to name his Jellie number three, he wondered what the hell they were doing to have to duplicate Scar’s favorite cat. Iris didn’t seem to want to let go of Jellie, so the other decided to scope out the place and find the time machine.

“There! There’s the time machine!” Grian excitedly said and pointed at the huge white machinery. Impulse and Ren celebrated. 

“Oh my goodness- it’s beautiful!” 

“Iris, stay here with Jellie 3 and keep a lookout for Doc and Scar, okay? We’ll try to repair the time machine.” Grian told Iris, kneeling down to give her hair a ruffle. Iris scrunched her nose up, but smiled and gave him a nod of confirmation that she will do just that. 

Grian smiled back and joined Ren and Impulse as they attempted to repair the time machine they work too hard to lose. 

… 

Iris sat down on the smooth ground, petting Jellie 3 softly. 

She was starting to get bored. 

And… worried. 

If Doc and Scar did come down here, then what would she do? Call their names? What will they do then? She wondered if Grian actually thought through what they should be doing, but Iris doesn’t worry about that. Grian is really smart, and she trusts him. 

Doc is also smart, she was told by many. Really, really smart about a lot of sciencey stuff that she had yet to learn about. 

“... Will he be angry?” She softly asked Jellie 3. “That we’re here? Even though he… took the time machine?” The only response she got was a mewl and a lick on the cheek. 

Iris was told that the reason they’re having a rebel group was so that they could take back the time machine that Doc took from Grian. She wondered if that’s the reason why Doc had been so busy that he won’t spend time with her anymore. 

She was also told that it was all for fun. And she likes to have fun! With all the toys she got from the hermit- though her favorite will always be Mini-Doc, because False is the best aunt and also its cute (and she misses Doc a lot). Her second favorite is the sheep plushie that Zedaph had gifted her just recently. Oh, she remembered Zed promising to teach Iris some redstone sometime. 

(Though, she also remembered Doc promising her the same thing when they had a picnic)

The sound of wings flapping and voices caused Iris to raise her head, attention spiking, and heart now beating a bit too hard. There are people here!

“Gri?!” Iris frantically said, really not sure on how she was supposed to react in this situation. Her call remained unanswered, and the door to the time machine remained shut. Though she noticed the time machine was shaking slightly.

“It’s over here!” Iris looked back, swearing she heard Scar’s voice echo into the chamber. She picked up Jellie 3 impulsively and ran to the time machine, calling the names of the hippies. 

But before she could take two steps in front, the time machine began to glow in a rapid, blinding light that forced Iris to shield her eyes by covering her face in Jellie 3’s fur. There were also sounds of heavy machinery whirring to life, and her lungs were filled with dust. 

When it all seemed clear, Iris slowly looked up, and turned sickly pale when she saw the time machine was gone from its place- and if it’s gone, it meant the hermits were gone as well. 

For a moment, Iris couldn’t believe it. Her grip on the cat loosened, which used its chance to jump away from her though Iris remained still, eyes locked on the empty room. 

She didn’t even hear Doc and Scar running up to her when the dust eventually cleared. 

“Iris? What are you doing here?” 

Doc. 

Iris turned, and immediately locked eyes with the hermit she thought was close to. 

Grian. Ren. Impulse. They’re gone. 

Because they were against what Doc and Scar were doing. They’re the bad ones. Grian just wanted his time machine back. They’re the bad ones. The hippies didn’t do anything wrong.

Now they’re gone. They’re gone and Iris doesn’t know where they went and it’s because- it’s because-

“Iris?” Doc hesitantly asked, stepping forward in concern. But Iris doesn’t see Doc, and hastily took a step back from him. 

No, this isn’t the Doc she knew. This isn’t the Doc that cared. 

This is the Doc that made Grian and Ren disappear. 

And for some reason, that made her angry, even though wet, hot tears began to flow down her cheeks like a waterfall as she continued to stare, almost in intimidation, to Doc only. Because he’s the bad guy, right? 

She felt home when Grian and Ren were around- and now Doc took that away. Because he’s- He’s the bad- 

Iris let out a hiccup and realized how much she’s struggling to breathe through her tears. Doc took another step forward, but all Iris wanted to do was run away from him- run away from the one who took Grian and Ren away. 

She didn’t know what to do- The hippies had all of their supplies, Iris only had a couple and none doesn’t seem effective. She also realized that her heart was low- probably due to the explosion from earlier even though it wasn't that near to her. It’s only on about five hearts but- can she take Doc and Scar? She doesn’t even know how to fight! 

“Iris? Hey, everything’s okay…” Doc managed to say, trying desperately to get her attention. “It’s just me, Doc, and Scar. You know us-” 

Then Iris saw the shimmering void of an ender pearl. Two of them. She didn’t even know she had these- then she remembered Ren giving it to her for emergencies. Almost in desperation (and also from having no options left), Iris threw the ender pearl towards Doc and Scar. 

The pearl flew between the hermits, and Iris let out a painful wince when the pearl hit the ground, teleporting her to that block and also taking damage on her hearts. She didn’t have enough hunger to heal but-

“Iris?! What are you?!-”

Iris lifted the last pearl above her head, ready to shatter it to take the last few hearts she had. Doc suddenly shouted and began running towards her, realizing the intention of throwing that pearl, but it was too late. 

She swung her hand down, the pearl shattering below her feet. She teleported on the same spot, but the damage it took caused her to give out her last breath. Her body poofed, and her items were thrown all over the place. 

Doc and Scar remained on their spots, horrified, even as their communicators began to ping rapidly. 

**1ris_ hit the ground too hard**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah yes, our first character death in this new story 
> 
> hermit fan kids have it rough, man


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quite a short chapter dudes and dudettes, sorry
> 
> Was too busy crying over blue bats in mcc 9 
> 
> And feedback is always appreciated!

The rapid vibration continued to distract Xisuma from his thoughts as he finally flew down into Area, seeing almost everyone there on the ground. He ignored the massive amount of flowers planted on the grass and focused on two groups that seemed to be against each other. Already his worries spiked, especially after seeing three of his hermits suddenly leaving the world and Iris dying shortly after. 

As he landed on the road, he realized that one group was holding Cleo and Iskall back from attacking Doc, who looked numb in shock as he was consoled by Scar and Stress. 

“What happened?” Xisuma asked his voice tense. “Where’s-”

“Hippie and Area 77 shit happened,” Jevin replied, his eyes cast downwards as if avoiding the gazes of everyone around him. “And Iris got in the middle of it.” 

The mention of the girl made Xisuma worry. “Where is she?”

“We don’t know. We assumed she was in the hippie camp since we figured she set her spawn there, but we couldn’t find her.” Mumbo replied, his communicator out in his hand. He gestured to it. “We tried contacting her but unfortunately, she doesn’t seem too keen on answering.”

“Wonder why.” Cleo spat, glaring at Doc. False and Joe were holding her back. And even though False was angry- Xisuma can see it in her eyes, she also looked worried. Perhaps for Cleo and Doc. 

“Two of my best friends are gone because of this- this mess!” Iskall added. Mumbo frowned and placed a comforting hand on the swede’s shoulder. 

Xisuma sighed deeply, not knowing exactly what to do. Four people are missing and simultaneously he had to prevent another murder from happening. Today is giving him a headache, already. “Ah, jeez… Alright, this is what we’ll do. Doc and Scar, I’ll be speaking to you to get your side of the story. Mumbo, I want you to find Iris. Everyone else, keep an eye out but continue on your day.”

There were sounds of protests among his fellow hermits. “Wouldn’t be faster if all of us search for her?” Zedaph questioned. “And- And there are so many places! It will take so long to find her.”

“Why can’t I look for her?” Cleo also questioned, her arms crossed. “I’m pretty sure Joe and I are more qualified considering we are her teachers and we care about her well-being.” 

Xisuma saw Doc wince at Cleo’s targeted words. He sighed again. “Firstly, Zedaph, it's quite clear right now that Iris wants to be alone. If she finds out all of us are searching for her- it will only make her hide away some more. Sure, it would be faster, but I think Grian would agree with me to let Iris choose to come out when she feels safe. And secondly, dear Cleo, you are extremely upset and in a murder-mood. So I suggest you calm down first.” 

Cleo grumbled, but finally, let her shoulders slack. Xisuma nodded at Joe, who then stood by her side to give his friend (girlfriend? They never really revealed their relationship to them) a hug from the side. 

“How am I supposed to find Iris?” Mumbo asked, his eyebrows scrunched in worry, and communicator still held tightly in his hands. “Where do I even start?”

“Despite what you believe, Mumbo, I think you know that answer already.” 

Mumbo only looked confused as Xisuma directed his attention back to the other hermits. “Alright, peeps, off you go!”

Even though there was a bit of hesitance within the group, they eventually did disperse to do their own things. 

* * *

Doc felt a sense of hollowness somewhere deep in his chest as he watched Xisuma examine the spot where Iris had intentionally… killed herself. He picked up a fragment of an ender pearl, watching it eventually poof from his fingertips. 

“Doc, I want you to tell me what happened. Everything, from your own perspective.” Xisuma began, standing up from his spot to look at his friend. “Even better, tell me _how_ this even happened.” 

Doc didn’t know how to reply, which already says a lot. 

Xisuma noticed the silence and frowned. He didn’t look disappointed, more so sad. “Doc, what happened? You… Grian, Ren, and Iris were so happy just a couple of days ago. Based on what the others are saying, I get the impression that you did something that made the hippies disappear and Iris to hide.” 

Again, another punch to the gut. Finally, he answered. “I got obsessed with my work in Area 77-” He saw Xisuma visibly look shock. “-and let it affect my responsibility with Iris. I haven’t interacted with her, Grian, or Ren the past few days. I think Iris got upset, which angered Grian no doubt. This rivalry of ours between the hippies and the government became a bit too personal. Iris got involved and joined the hippies, and you know the rest.”

The admin was silent. Doc could feel his cheeks burning with shame and looked away. “I know, I know, I fucked up big time.”

“... What happened to Grian and the others?” 

There was no response from Doc- mainly because the question did take him by surprise. What did happen to the hippies? When he got there, it was just a lot of smoke and Iris and-

The time machine was gone. And if it’s gone then that meant-

“They time-traveled.” Doc murmured. Xisuma blinked, and let out a soft ‘what did you say?’ at Doc’s response. 

“I said, they time-traveled.” Doc repeated, this time louder and more nervous. “X, this is bad.”

“I get that, yes. But since was time-travel a thing?” 

“It wasn’t.” 

They both paused at that, looking at each other with shocked faces at the fact that Grian was able to fucking time-travel. Grian! The gremlin builder who complains about redstone and wears flower crowns! And also the one who first created havoc within the server by introducing Tag, then initiating Civil War between the hermits, and also have Watcher powers stronger than Xisuma’s and… 

… Actually, it doesn’t sound that surprising that Grian figured out time traveling. There’s always something about Grian that just creates chaos wherever he goes, whether intentional or not. 

Still, it didn’t stop the worry from rising within Doc and Xisuma himself. 

“We can only assume that they are okay, but likely stuck,” Xisuma said. “How knowledgeable are you with time-travel? Specifically within this universe?” 

“Not as much as Cub, actually. I’m more of a ‘multi-universe’ kind of doctor since it’s more interesting to me. I can borrow Cub’s books and try to learn more about it, so we know what we’re doing and hopefully, if it comes down to it, save Grian, Ren, and Impulse.” 

The thought of the hermits (more specifically, the thought of Grian and Ren) being alone in who-knows-where made Doc sick with worry, but he tried to mask it with his usually stoic expression. There’s nothing much he can do about it. 

Still, with them gone, Iris is likely going to avoid him like the plague. The trust and bond he had with her (albeit quite little) was damaged due to his rather idiotic decisions. Old habits die hard, he supposed. 

(And whether he realizes this or not, there’s a terrible tug in his heart that made it painful. It didn’t feel like it was his heart, not _entirely_ at least.)

Xisuma looked thoughtful, noticing Doc was staring at the spot where the time-machine was. “... I don’t think it’s your fault they time-traveled.” 

Doc looked at him blankly, not quite understanding what he meant by that. 

“They could have decided to confront you, or maybe find a way to get the time machine out of Area 77. But they decided to use the time machine. You and Scar weren’t there when they initiated the time-travel, so the bit about them time-traveling wasn’t yours to blame.”

What Xisuma said made sense, somehow, but Doc was doubtful. Especially since he remembered the look Iris was giving him when they confronted each other about an hour ago.

She was crying, but more so than that, Doc recognized the look of anger in her usually sparkling grey orbs. It didn’t take long to realize that while Xisuma certainly did not see Doc as the one to blame for the hippies’ disappearance via time travel, Iris thought differently. She believed Doc was the cause of all this, and the cause of losing Grian and Ren. 

Again, he’s just speculating, but it makes a lot of sense as to why Iris wouldn’t want to see stay near him after all that. 

“Doc, are you okay?” 

Doc didn’t answer. He may have not heard Xisuma’s question, but he did know the answer to it. 

No, he was not okay. But the kid isn’t okay, either, and it’s his fault. He could feel his soul and heart-clenching tightly at the thought, and soon Doc recognized the feeling of regret for not spending time with Iris and guilt for being the one to cause Iris to hide away in the first place.   


Somewhere deep inside, he also recognized the feeling of… defeat. He doesn’t know why, then he looked down at his right arm, catching the reflection of the black and silver metal, with the soft glow of redstone tubes that was seen through the small gaps. Doc sighed, seeing his robotic limb. 

It was a painful reminder of who he truly was. 

Of course, it only makes everything he was feeling worse, knowing he’s only pitying himself where he should be the one to make up for the mistakes he’s done. Iris deserves better. He knows this. He wants to give her only the best because she deserves that, after what she’s been through. 

… Can _he_ give her that?

“Doc?” 

“I need a drink.” Doc rasped out and walked past Xisuma. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> doc NO 
> 
> also theres an askblog! this is call for help i need interaction pls-


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> before you scold me for not posting for a long time- have a chapter! :D

Mumbo did _not_ know where to start. 

For fifteen minutes, he had been walking around Hermitville in an endless loop, hoping by some miracle that Iris was there while also simultaneously wondering where else she could have gone.

Out of all the places in their server, Iris seemed more connected to this side more than the mainland itself. Iris does go back to Grian’s megabase to sleep there but if it was up to her, she would stay in Hermitville. Blimey, she would even stay in Bdubs’ and Keralis’ village if given the chance (where her school with Cleo and Joe were located. He wondered if she was just too lazy to go back and forth). 

Mumbo frowned to himself and looked up at the afternoon sun. There were no clouds, and the sun was beating down on him with no mercy. He narrowed his eyes and shed his black jacket to give him some mercy from the heat. 

Iris doesn’t like the sun, he remembered Grian telling him one day. Only because she prefers dark spaces, he added. It was an odd conversation starter, but Grian had noticed this habit of Iris to just hide under her blankets or even the cupboards in Grian's tall rustic house. Perhaps that could give him the right direction to where Iris could be hiding? But… where in this humongous server would there be a dark space for Iris to hide in? 

She may be a smart little girl but she doesn’t know her way around the server yet, which is why she’s always accompanied by a hermit. 

For some reason, Mumbo was compelled to enter the ridiculously tall rustic house that Grian made during the build-off. It was a bit of a memory lane, going back here when he remembered this was where he stayed to look after Stress the day they found Iris. 

He entered, having to crouch down under a cobblestone slab, and found Villager Grian aimlessly walking around inside. The villager murmured a greeting upon seeing the hermit, Mumbo giving back an awkward nod as a response.

Nothing much changed inside, as far as he could see. There were still shulker boxes placed all over, as well as chests and a messy bed tucked into one wall. Placing a finger on top of a surface, he could see a layer of dust on his skin. 

“Grian really did leave you here, hm?” Mumbo asked, looking at the Villager with slight worry. “That doesn’t seem very healthy. Do you want to go out?” 

Villager Grian murmured some more, and shook his head side-to-side, as if to say no. Mumbo was still worried about the villager, considering he’s living in a state like this, and began to store the shulker boxes in his inventory to give more space. Maybe even mop the floor or something… 

“You don’t happen to know where Iris is, do you?” It seemed rather odd to talk to a villager, knowing he won’t be able to respond. He supposed it’s a good thing that this villager could understand English. 

Villager Grian murmured negatively. 

“I figured. It’s been a while since Grian or Iris had visited you.” 

There was a sound of rustling. Mumbo looked up and saw Villager Grian kicking a chest, giving Mumbo a look and pointing his gaze downwards. Mumbo was rather hesitant to follow the implications of Villager Grian’s instructions, but seeing as there’s nothing else he can do, he followed. 

He swiped away the dust layering the chest, and opened it with a click and a squeak from the hinges. Inside, there were a few books and quills messily stored, as well as a small iron golem plushie. 

Mumbo picked up the soft toy and gave it a squeeze. “Isn’t this what Tango got for Iris as a gift? Why is it here?” 

Again, Villager Grian murmured. He then gestured to the house with his eyes.

“... You’re alone most of the time. Iris doesn’t want you to feel alone, so she left a toy of hers for you to feel less lonely.” Mumbo guessed. When Villager Grian responded by nodding, Mumbo couldn’t help but smile. Leave it for Iris to make the life of a villager better. 

“That means Iris visits here often. Did she pass by here?”

Villager Grian murmured, shaking his head as a no. Although, he did kick the chest again, urging Mumbo to check out the books. Mumbo, though rather uncertain, picked out the first book he saw and flipped it into a random page. 

It was full of drawings. Nothing too interesting or eye-catching (no offence, Iris). Not even a clue to tell him where Iris could be. 

But he did not lose hope just yet. Mumbo flipped through the pages, and he realized some even looked like Villager Grian. He smiled, seeing the artist in Iris coming out. Maybe she’ll like some of Scar’s works, then. 

When he came to the last page, he stopped. In the drawing was a stick figure of Iris in… what he would assume was a cave. Iris looked happy in the drawing.   


“Cave… It’s a dark place. Maybe Iris is hiding in a cave!” Mumbo guessed, finally having some kind of lead. He had no clue on how Villager Grian knew what he was thinking, but he is not going to question it. “But where? There’s a lot of caves around here but we already lit them up… It can’t also be that far, Iris doesn’t know her way around…”

Villager Grian murmured. 

“Right! It also has to be a cave that Iris is familiar with. How come Grian never told me just how smart you are?” 

The villager looked smug at the compliment.

Now, Mumbo just had to figure out which cave Iris went to (assuming she actually did go to a cave). There’s still time left in the day, so he could just start going to an existing cave and search there.

Wait, no. Iris likes dark spaces usually, so it wouldn’t make sense for her to hide in an already _lit_ cave. Though, there is absolutely no way for her to stay in an unlit cave full of mobs. Unless… 

“... There’s a cave that doesn’t?”

Logic, obviously, does not agree with that statement. But there has to be a cave that Iris would know and be comfortable in… And one where she knows there would be no mobs. Ren and Grian taught her to be cautious, after all.  


Villager Grian hummed, shocking Mumbo. The hermit accidentally dropped the book he was holding. Before he could pick it up, the villager walked over and began to shift through the pages using his foot (quite impressively, he might add). He stopped on the page, and gestured for Mumbo to look. 

The page has a stick figure of Iris and the first three hermits that found her. There were also thick black lines surrounding Iris. 

Seeing those lines, it hit Mumbo like a truck, and immediately he dashed out of the rustic house as if he realized he won a grand prize of finally knowing where Iris is.  


The villager looked at the open door, silently grumbling when the hermit forgot to close it. 

* * *

Iris repeatedly tapped her nail on the smooth ground, the sound small but loud in her ears in this dark cave she found herself in. 

She was tucked into one wall, legs close to her chest and locked in place by her free arm. She swayed side-ways, lightly. She ended up tapping two fingers against the ground. 

Iris’ brain was like… like… mush? She doesn’t know how to describe it, but it’s something like looking through a very foggy glass. Maybe that’s the word- foggy. Her brain was foggy, not making it easy for her to think of anything clear. Her focus was also not there, which of course, she did not realize. 

All she could really seem to understand was that she was restless and wanted to move, but was too tired after the long run she did from… from… 

She forgot the name, but it was where Doc was. She ran away from him. 

She ran a long way, somewhere she didn’t know. But her legs were taking her to… somewhere. It was kind of familiar, while also not. But then she saw a dark cave from afar, and followed the thoughts that told her to go in and hide. 

Unintentionally, Iris began to hum. Not to comfort herself, but because she wanted to. 

Should she be getting back now?

… No, this is fine. 

Iris wondered where Grian and Ren had gone. Impulse was also gone. He was nice, though she remembered he was very wary of her at the start. 

… The cave’s really cold. Iris shuddered at the cold and tried to make herself smaller to keep warm. That’s what Cleo taught her yesterday, about science. Granted, she didn’t actually understand it, though she only nodded when Cleo asked her if she got it. She didn’t want to make Cleo angry for not understanding her teaching. 

Oh, she wondered if Cleo had fun with Joe on their date a few nights ago.

When was that?-

“Iris?” 

Blinking, the young girl finally lifted her head. She winced at the sore feeling, but managed to make out the funny-looking hair on the hermit’s face. 

“Hi, mumby.” Iris greeted, her voice small and scratchy, as if she hadn’t had water in a while. Maybe, but it was more of she was exhausted from crying her eyes out a while ago, though she wasn’t sure when she actually stopped cried. 

Mumbo smiled, and sat down in front of Iris. He seemed to be searching through his inventory, before pulling out what Iris recognized was a glass bottle filled with water.

“Thanku.” “Not a problem.” 

Once Iris was hydrated, she felt energized and more awake, more aware of her surroundings. It could likely be due to Mumbo now being in her presence that she can focus on, but the water really did make her feel better. 

“So, this is where you’ve ran off to?” Mumbo asked, gesturing the cave they were in. Iris silently nodded. She didn’t know why she ran into this exact cave, but seeing as Mumbo found her, she didn’t think too much about it.

“Hm, quite dark in here, isn't?” 

“I like it. It feels more safe.” Iris replied, shrugging. “I also like the sun, cuz’ it brings a lot of color to everything else. More bright. Lively.” 

Mumbo wore a face of confusion, one Iris recognized many times when a hermit did not fully understand what she was saying. She was used to it, so she didn’t feel as upset as before. Still, it stink that the hermits couldn’t make sense of her words even though it does for her. 

Well, Grian said it’s cuz’ she’s a kid, so she doesn’t know much English yet.  


… She doesn’t know what that meant for her but she guessed it meant she’ll just have to work hard in Joe’s class.

“So… Uh… Do you want to go back?” 

Iris was awake, but her body felt heavy and sore. There’s really no point in lying to Mumbo, but still, she felt bad in admitting her weakness. She doesn’t know why it even hurts to admit that she’s tired, but it does. However, she pushed her fear aside to give a small, but meek nod towards Mumbo’s direction. 

Mumbo gave Iris a nod back, a small smile on his face. “Do you want me to carry you on my back? It’s quite a long distance, and I think you deserve a nap.” 

The last time someone carried Iris on their back was when she wanted to reach Impulse’s height. Grian had lifted her up and placed her on his shoulders, now towering over Impulse who wholeheartedly laughed at the antic. Iris remembered the feeling of exhileration as she wobbled on Grian’s shoulders, moving back and forth to keep her balance. But Grian made sure to never let go of her. 

Except he kind of did, but she simply just slid off until she was on his back. The rest of the day she just hung there, arms around his neck while Grian supported her weight as he worked. She even took a nap. 

Honestly, Iris missed the feeling. 

“Yea. Is it okay?” 

“Of course. Come,” 

Mumbo had kneeled down to allow Iris to climb on his back. She can already tell Mumbo had never done this before, with how he struggled to keep his balance but somehow miraculously kept his footing. She didn’t even feel scared of being dropped, she trusted Mumbo to keep her safe. 

… Trust is a weird word to say. Doc is basically her ‘dad’, right? And having a dad means being part of the family, and being in a family means to have trust. But after what happened, how can she trust him? 

She couldn’t answer that question, not realizing her eyelids were becoming heavier and heavier until she dozed off by the time Mumbo had reached the cave entrance. She didn’t know that Mumbo’s expression had soon softened when he heard even breathing leaving her lips, his eyes now looking up at the clear sky in question of where his dear friend was. 

* * *

“Strange that no one had lit up that cave after the whole fiasco with that… Xonne god.” Stress had commented, placing a hand on Iris’ forehead to briefly check her temperature. The girl was fast asleep on the bed, in Stress’ Hermitville home (the victim of the build off with Grian, Scar and Iskall). 

“Honestly, I think it slipped our minds after the server reset.” Mumbo replied, sipping his cup of tea that Stress had prepared. “I mean, Iris is alive and here now, despite everything. Cub still doesn’t know how she survived and Xisuma doesn’t seem to even know what he did that could cause a server to reset, and for Iris to rejoin the server.”

There was a pause as the two hermits thought it through. 

Stress eventually cut through the silence by laughing. “Never mind that, though. Did you say Iris seemed distant when you found her?”

“I believe so. I mean, I was holding a torch and I was a few blocks away from her, yet she didn’t seem to notice me at all, like she’s lost in her own world. I didn't want to scare her so I took the fire out and called her. She was also fidgeting around, like tapping and stuff like that. I don’t know. Why do you ask?”

Stress hummed, having summoned a book and quill out from her inventory to scribble something down. “Oh, nothing in particular. Just that Cub had come to me earlier to tell me to take note of Iris’ actions. Not sure why, something about health and symptoms? Whatever the case, Cub wanted to give Iris a check-up. This is the first time Iris had… intentionally harmed herself to the point of respawning.” 

The thought of Iris hurting herself purposely gave Mumbo a bit of a fright. Thank goodness Iris isn’t awake to see his terrified face for her. 

“Still… When you were at her age, do you have to resort to… uh… intentionally harm yourself to the point of death, just to respawn or run away?” Mumbo asked Stress, though made a face when he realized how bad it sounded. “I mean… I know all of us have different experiences that range from traumatizing to boring but to resort to that method at such a young age...” 

“She’s resourceful for the wrong reasons.” Stress stated. Mumbo watched as she put away potions of various effects into a shulker box. “She didn’t have a weapon but she had enderpearls, which causes damage. She used what she had for a quick escape- because respawning somewhere far away is better than being around your captives if given the opportunity. However… Running away from the people meant to care for you is not really… good.” 

She had paused her movements. Even though her back was facing him, Mumbo could tell she was disheartened by that fact. 

“Right… Doc… Where is he?”

“I think Doc felt guilty for whatever happened with Iris. It’s really sad.” Replied Stress. At this point she had stored three shulker boxes into a double chest, likely full of extra healing items. “Seeing them like this, I mean. Iris needs support but Doc can’t provide that in his state of guilt.” 

“... Which is odd, because this doesn’t sound like Doc. It’s weird.” 

“Makes it all the more worrying, Mumbo. I don’t know if Doc is ready to take the role of a father figure, even if he cares a lot about her.”

Mumbo looked at Stress, surprised to hear her say that. “Doc is ready for any challenge. He isn’t the type to back out if things get tough.”

“Doc is ready for any challenge _except_ for parenthood, is what I meant. When had he ever mentioned he wanted a kid? I don’t think he has ever handled a child before in his entire life. I assumed Grian and Ren had some small experiences, and with the time they spent with Iris, they are more ready than Doc in terms of caring for a child by a mile. Not to mention they had each other for support. Now that both of them disappeared, Doc is alone to handle Iris, and I’m afraid this will be the part where he will struggle the most.” There was a slight pause as Stress looked over at Iris’ sleeping form. She frowned. Mumbo didn’t know what Stress was thinking. 

“... Never mind, I was going to say something really strange.” Stress said, laughing slightly and waving it off. 

Mumbo nodded, still frowning but decided to leave it at that. “Okay… I’ll go send the message that Iris is safe. Do you know where Doc is?” 

“No, but I think Iskall does.” 

* * *

Doc stood on the cliff overlooking Area 77. There were still flowers planted all over the place, but he didn’t find himself caring for them at that moment. He knew he would eventually clear them out, with or without Scar’s help. That’s just the way it is, but somewhere deep inside, Doc didn’t really want to clear them. Not just yet, anyway. 

As annoying as it was to stop the magic that made the flowers grow, this was done by the hands of the hippies before they disappeared. Evidence of their existence in Area 77 before time travelling to who knows when and where. 

It feels wrong of him to destroy that, especially after what happened with Iris. She would probably hate him more for destroying the flowers. 

There was the sound of grass scrunching up behind him. Doc looked over his shoulder, and caught the sight of the swede standing a few blocks away from him. He sighed. “Here to scold me or blame me for them being gone? Go ahead, my brain’s too drunk to properly digest it, anyway.” 

Iskall let out a humorless laugh at the statements. “That’s a lie. You’re not a lightweight and when you get drunk, you’re more talkative. Also, you tend to remember things from when you get drunk after a hangover, so it would be pointless for me to blame you if you’re just gonna react the same way to it when sober.” Iskall responded, taking a few steps before standing next to Doc on the cliff. 

Doc took the moment to look at the hermit. Iskall didn’t look angry anymore, but he was definitely not happy with the situation. He did lose Grian and Ren… he wondered if Tango and Zedaph were angry with him, too, for Impulse’s disappearance.

“Also… I’m not here to blame you. It’s not entirely your fault, I don’t think. I just want to check on you, see how you’re doing and... “ Iskall glanced down at the bottle, loosely gripped by the hybrid, before looking up again. “... Tell you to stop drinking soon. You still have a kid to look after.”

“Yea, well, the kid hates me.” 

“How can you be so sure?” 

Doc shrugged, letting his fingers twirl the remains of the bottle. There was a quarter left of the liquid, but Doc didn’t feel like finishing it as he thought through his response. 

“... Okay, fine. The kid _probably_ doesn’t hate me, but I don’t think she would want to stick around.” 

“Again, how can you be so sure?” 

There was a bite in Iskall's tone, his irritation showing through with every response Doc made. The creeper did not react to that, although he made a sudden realization that if he continued on, Iskall is going to really, really, hate his guts due to how annoyed he was already. Iskall must have noticed this, too, as he suddenly tore his gaze away from him to stare at a flower patch near his shoes, fists clenched on both sides as an attempt to calm his nerves down. It seemed to work, when after a while his fists slowly uncurled.   


After about ten minutes, Doc finally replied. “In her eyes, I’m the reason for them being gone. And with how I’ve been acting as a lousy parental figure, I think it’s enough reason for her to avoid me.” 

“... So you’re here, drinking and not looking for her?” 

“She would just avoid me.” 

“Better than not being there at all.” 

Doc didn’t have a response for that. Even though it was barely evening, he felt tired. He wanted to see Iris, but he also knew Iris didn't _want_ to see him. As you can pretty much tell, he’s in a dilemma. 

Iskall sighed, realizing he won’t be getting an answer out of him. 

“Just… if you need help, we’ll be around, okay? But Iris needs you. Remember that.” 

* * *

When night falls, there was a group of hermits hanging around New Hermitville. 

Cleo was leaning her head onto Joe’s shoulder with eyes drooping from exhaustion, while the poet was quietly reading a book. Cub was making some notes while Scar sat beside him, looking nervous as he twiddled with his thumbs. Iskall was messing with his communicator, likely texting Stress and Xisuma was staring at the fire pit within their circle blankly. 

Bdubs was with them minutes ago, but he had retired back into his home to get some shut-eye. It was late.  


“Got the message from Stress- Iris is sleeping with her in Hermitville.” Said Iskall, cutting through the silence and putting his communicator back onto his pocket. He looked up at the rest of the hermits, who now had their attention on him. Iskall gulped, pushing down the nerves of having so many hermits look at him. “... Now what?” 

“Get Doc’s head out of his arse?” Cleo tiredly suggested. Joe placed down the book on his lap, and used his free arm to wrap around Cleo, rubbing her arm comfortingly. 

“I think I got that part down.” Iskall shrugged, leaning forward and linking his hands together. “Or at least, he’s gonna try. It all comes down to Iris. If Iris doesn’t want him around then… I don’t know how Doc would react to that.”

They were all silent as they contemplated. 

Joe spoke, “If I may say, it’s bizarre to realize neither Doc nor Iris know how to act in their roles as a family.” 

“Elaborate,” Xisuma quietly said. 

“Doc clearly doesn’t know how to act as a father, but Iris doesn’t seem to act as a daughter either. They’re like two strangers that are forced to act as a family, except neither knows how to act like one because they had never had a family before. Doc clearly told us he didn’t have parents, and I doubt Iris remembered her family after everything she’s been through. With Grian and Ren gone, it makes it harder for Iris to be a ‘daughter’ to Doc. Does that make sense?” 

“It does, somewhat.” Cub agreed, nodding. “Which makes it all the more worrying. If they don’t… I don’t know, resolve what happened, then it can only lead to a disaster that could do more than tear apart our community. You can already see it.”

Iskall and Cleo avoided Cub’s stare. They knew the words were directed at them, as they were aggressive to Doc after realizing he had a part in Iris’ sudden death. Although they have moved on and are already calm, they still feel some sort of negative emotions towards the hybrid, but they weren’t angry anymore. Just worried.  


Scar was quiet the entire time, but Joe, ever the keen eye, noticed tears pricking the corner of the builder’s eyes. “Scar? Everything alright?” 

Scar whimpered, and couldn’t help but let the tears fall. Cub was quick to rush in and comfort him, leaving others worried as to what had caused Scar to cry. They didn’t push him.

“I can’t h-help but realize that… I could’ve helped Doc.” Scar managed to say, wiping away his tears. The others didn’t say anything, confused as to what Scar meant. “I had been with Doc during this period. I could’ve convinced him to spend more time with Iris or- or did something so he doesn’t work as much. All I did w-was encourage his behavior and support him, even though I knew what he was doing was worrying. I could’ve done something-” 

“Hey, hey… Scar, it’s okay. What happened already happened. You could’ve done something, or Doc could’ve done something, it doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is the _now_ and how we, as a community is going to handle it.” Cub interjected, pulling Scar into a hug to comfort him. “We’ll all help Doc and Iris… right, Xisuma?” 

Xisuma blinked, and looked up at Cub with a clear look of confusion. Upon seeing the other hermits now focused on him, he coughed. 

“Right- yes. We will help them.” 

“... X, are you alright?”

Xisuma nodded. “Just thinking about our next step is all... We have two things to do now. First, fix Doc’s relationship with Iris. And second, find where the hippies are. The first part has to be done by Doc himself, so if anything we have to nudge our fellow friend into the right direction. And while we’re at it, make sure Iris is well cared for and maybe encourage her to listen to what Doc has to say. What I’m more worried about is the hippies- because what they have done is time traveling, according to Doc. Cub, can you help with that?” 

Cub nodded, still holding Scar close to him. “Yea- I can do that. A bit rusty about the topic but I still have my notes. I'll try and find something that can help.” 

“Super. I think… I think that’s all we can do for now. We should sleep.” 

The others nodded. But despite Xisuma suggesting they now rest, none of them stood up from their seats, nor seem to show signs of wanting to. Not even Xisuma himself. No one said anything about it, though, only letting the silence fill the air as they worry what tomorrow will bring. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a bunch of reasons why I didn't post much
> 
> Mainly due to family reasons and the pandemic. I don't want to go into details but last year was pretty freaking crazy that I just didn't feel motivated.   
> Another reason was that I'm enrolling into college (or what is considered college here lmao) and the process is freaking hecking long lol. Lots of documents and stuff that I need to do that makes me even less motivated. I had a few chapters written but after rereading them, I was unsatisfied so I'm planning on rewriting it
> 
> I really apologize for taking so long but hopefully I'll start posting more frequently   
> Oh, and I'm still planning on doing the askblog. I just... haven't had the time for it yet oof 
> 
> If the narrative in this chapter seems wonky thats mainly because I rewrote this chapter twice, but ended up mixing some of the scenes together from the two chapters

**Author's Note:**

> the format of the story is a bit wonky. wrote it in google docs and am too lazy to change the first five chapters :P


End file.
